How my Life CrashLanded
by NadyaB
Summary: Hogwarts has always been home for Muggle-born witch Natalie. When she returns for her fifth year, she discovers her carefree life will come slowly tumbling down with the revelation that she is Harry Potter's long-lost cousin, and the only other surviving Potter.
1. Prologue

There was a flash of green light, a scream cut in half and a loud thumpo to the floor. Debris lay strewn across the room as though a storm had recently passed through. He stepped over an overturned table, ran his hand across the mantel, dusty with plaster. Under his foot glass crunched, but he paid no attention. It was a photo of a small boy, no older than one, laughing as he toddled around the yard with a girl the same age, their parents talking and laughing, as though they hadn't a care in the world. Now, all was quiet.


	2. Chapter 1 The Only Boys I'll Ever Need

"Pass me another cauldron cake, will you?" I asked one of my best friends, Fred Weaskey. I was leaning against the window of the train, feet propped up on his lap.

"I swear Natakie, one day you'll be the size of a beached whale if you keep this up," my other best friend and Fred's twin George said, tossing me the cake.

"I'm not fat!" I cried, throwing a toffee at him. He ducked as it narrowly missed his left ear, then watched it fly out of the compartment.

"Pity the poor soul who eats that." Lee Jordan said with a laugh. Thirty seconds later a first year picked it up and popped it in his mouth. No sooner was he halfway down the did the screaming begin.

"Ton-tongue Toffee" George singsonged. All four of us burst out laughing.

"No need to find a tester for those anymore," I commented, "save us a few Galleons."

"Very true, little sis," Fred replied, wiggling his flaming red eyebrows.

Fred, George and Lee were more than best friends; they were brothers to me. They were already third-years when I arrived, but I liked to think that they took me under their wing to help mentor me in mischief so that after they left Hogwarts, someone else could continue for them. The three of them were probably, no, most definitely, the most brilliant minds of the 21st century.

"Guys, do you think we should help him?" I asked, trying to look serious, but my mouth kept twitching. We all began to laugh uncontrollably again. Suddenly a bushy head appeared in the doorway. _Hermione. _

"Could you keep it down in here?" she asked. I noticed her shiny new prefect's badge and nearly retched.

"Just trying to have a good time" I replied breezily, biting into my Cauldron Cake. Hermione narrowed her eyes.

"Well you could do that evern if you shut up a bit," she spat. I swung my legs off of Fred's lap and stood up, squaring my shoulders.

"Just because you're a _prefect _now..." I began, but a new voice cut me off.

"Problem Mudblood?" Draco Malfoy asked, leering at Hermione. He leaned against the compartment doorway, and his look of hate changed when he saw me.

"Alright, Boyd?" he asked. I ignored him and sat down.

"You know I don't like Granger any more than you do," he said, casting a look of death at Hermione.

"Good for you, Malfoy." I replied, curling up in my seat. He looked me up and down.

"You know, if you weren't a Gryffindor-" he began, smiling. Fred, George and Lee all shot out their wands as he said it, staring hard at him.

"Out, Malfoy," Lee said, his voice surprisingly threatening. Malfoy rolled his beady little eyes and stalked down the corridor. I looked up at Hermione, who looked extremely uncomfortable.

"Hey,um, sorry Hermione," I tried to say, but she had already turned away. So much for trying to be nice. I closed my eyes and tried to ignore the negative thoughts. Malfoy was a sleazy douchebag, that was all.

"You okay?" Fred asked in concern. I was grateful to the three for standin up for me;they wre the best people in the world.

"Oh yeah, I'm fine. It's Malfoy." I replied, stretching my feet onto the nearest lape and falling asleep. Not exactly the way I wanted to start off year five at Hogwarts.


	3. Chapter 2 Cockroach Clusters

The Welcoming Feast was as delicious as ever. I ate enough to last me a lifetime in between catapulting food at unsuspecting Hufflepuffs. Ron Weasley, Fred and George's younger brother, was sitting across from me, and every time I looked at him he turned beet red. Hermione would shoot me dirty looks every now and then, making it hard for me to not aim my spoon catapult in her direction.

After pudding, I was so full that I made George piggy-back me out. I couldn't wait to change into some comfy pajamas and curl up in my four poster bed.

"Do I really have to haul you all the way up to Gryffindor Tower?" George groaned, tightening his grip on my legs. I laughed and rested my head on his.

"I would love you forever and ever. I'll pay you back with a lovely foot massage if you do." I replied rather sleepily.

"Miss Boyd!" A voice said sharply from behind me. I jerked my head up and in doing so fell off of George's back and thumped onto the marble floor. Several passing Hufflepuffs sniggered, but I barely noticed, being too busy rubbing my backside.

"Sorry, Professor. I should know better," I apologized, getting to my feet. McGonagall pursed her lips.

"I haven't the time to discuss your acts of idiocy, Miss Boyd," she replied in a snap. "Professor Dumbledore wishes to see you in his office."

My mouth dropped open. "D-Dumbledore?" I sputtered.

McGonagall sighed. "That's _professor _Dumbledore to you. And yes, that's what I said."

I followed McGonagall through the crowded entrance, shrugging at Fred and George's questioning looks.

"Mr Potter!" she called, ad Harry turned toward her. Why did she need Harry Potter as well? We were in the same house yet we barely spoke outside of Quidditch. That had to be the reason why Dumbledore needed us.

"What is it Professor?" he asked politely. A far cry from my grand tumble off of George.

"Professor Dumbledor has asked me to take you to his office," she answered. Harry merely nodded. I figured that it must be relatively normal to be called to see the Headmaster. He furrowed his brow when he saw me on McGonagall's other side. As we walked through an empty corridor, Harry hurried to my side.

"Do you have any idea what this is about?" He asked in a low voice.

"No clue." I replied. I sighed quietly and leaned in. "D'you reckon it's about Quidditch?"

Harry shook his head. "Dumbledore wouldn't us see him about Quidditch. We'd talk to our Head of House."

We had come to a stop at a large stone gargoyle and my stomach clenched uncomfortably.

"Cockroach Clusters," said McGonagall, and the gargoyle leapt aside, revealing a large spiral staircase. We all stepped onto the first step, and it began to move upward. McGonagall reached for the brass door knocker at the top of the staircase but the door opened before she had the chance to do anything. I hesitated in the doorway, but she nudged me rather hard into the room. I expected her to come with us but the door merely shut again and I found myself standing in an enormoius office, heart beating so loud Harry could hear it.


	4. Chapter 3 Who Am I Exactly?

**So this is the big turning pont in the storyyyyyy! I hope it makes sense... I tried to tie it in with the actual books so that it's actually believeable. I mean, in the series they never mention James Potter having... SPOILER ALERT. Not gonna say anything else. Review/message to give me more ideas! Hope you like it!**

"Miss Boyd, Mr. Potter, do come in," Professor Dumbledore said warmly. He procured two chintz armchairs with a wave of his wand and set them down in front of his desk, which was teeming with strange instruments. Harry dropped right into a chair, but I awkwardly remained standing, surveying the room.

"Have a seat, Natalie. I don't intend to bite you." Dumbledore said, an amused twinkle in his eyes.

I sat down slowly and looked at Harry for some kind of peer support, but he was gazing at Dumbledore as though he was some sort of God. Several silent seconds ticked by, and each one felt like an eternity on its' own.

"Did you enjoy the feast?" Dumbledore asked. Harry and I nodded. "It's always lovely to come back to Hogwarts to eat meals."

My leg was jiggling uncontrollably and my patience was shot.

"Sorry, er, Headmaster, but why exactly are we here?" I asked. I expected Dumbledore to tell me off, but his eyes crinkled from behind his half-moon spectacles.

"I was wondering when one of you would inquire about that." he said, still smiling. My heart thudded and I took a huge breath.

"Well, I'll simply begin by saying that you, Natalie, are not a Muggle- born witch. You do have wizarding parentage"

I stared at him. That couldn't be right. My parents were both Muggles – very Muggle-y Muggles. My dad was an accountant and my mother a chiropractor.

"You were adopted at around two years old, when your father died. He was a wizard. Your mother, however, was a Muggle."

I was still stunned. "W-what does that have to do with Harry?" I asked slowly, taking time to pronounce all my words.

Dumbledore smiled again. "You see, your father was Daniel Potter, James Potter's younger brother. As you know, James is Harry's father."

"Was", Harry muttered.

I shook my head. "No. No way. This can't be true."

"Yeah! My dad never had a brother." Harry piped up.

"That's what the world thought." Dumbledore replied. "James' family was pure-blood, and thus very well-respected and proud of their blood status. Daniel was second born, not as intelligent, nor as attractive." Dumbledore paused. "I hope you don't take offence to that, Natalie."

I stared blankly at him. "This is too much."

"I want to hear it," Harry interrupted. "There's always so much rubbish people seem to hide from me,"

Well then if it's such rubbish then how do you know it's true?" I argued, tears springing to my eyes.

"You really think the Headmaster would lie to you?" Harry said sarcastically.

"I don't know what to think." I said quietly. "Turns out my while fucking life had been a lie. What's one more?"

"May I continue?" Dumbledore asked calmly. I wiped my eyes and faced him. "I know, Natalie, that this must be especially difficult for you, but you must hear the entire story, and that was only the beginning." He looked at me kindly and I nodded slightly.

"The Potters wanted to keep Daniel a secret because by the time his eleventh birthday had occured, he hadn't demonstrated any sign of magic. It became apparent when no Hogwarts acceptance letter came that he was a Squib."

My dad had been a Squib? "Wouldn't that mean that I am too?"  
"Well clearly you're a witch." Harry's tone was still filled with sarcasm.

"Yes, Natalie, Harry vaguely has a point." said Dumbledore. "No matter whether your father was a Squib or not, he was still a wizard. But back to the story now, shall we?" He said, almost in a cheerful tone.

"Daniel knew he wasn't wanted, and he lived not unlike how Harry lives with the Dursleys now. As soon as he came of age, he left home and went to a Muggle school I am sure you are both familiar with; a university. He believed he was better suited for a life completely void of magic. That was how he met your mother, Natalie. They were married after they graduated and quite soon had you. Little did they know that two months later a certain boy would be born"

I glanced at Harry's expressionless face and tried to smile, but the corners of my mouth refused to pull up.

"James told Lily everything, of course, and she insisted that they get in touch. I believe Harry, that she was thinking of the relationship with her own sibling, and didn't want it to also be the same with your father and his brother.

"So owl upon owl was sent back and forth until things were resolved. Your families became close, and when you were both very young, you played together."

"And then Voldemort killed my parents." Harry said in a flat voice. I nearly fell off my chair. I had never heard anyone say You-Know-Who's name before; it felt like a Bludger had hit me in the stomach.

"Yes, to put it bluntly, that is what happened. Daniel became so distraught that he ended his life before anyone else could. Your mother, Natalie, left you at an orphanage and fled. She didn't want anyone to know about your family, for fear that you would also be a target."

"Why tell us now?" I asked, upset.

"I only uncovered this information this past summer. Your birth mother wrote to me, as she assumed you have been attending Hogwarts. I spoke to her in person, and she told be everything." Dumbledore replied.

"So my mum's still alive?" I asked excitedly. I had an actual mother somewhere.

"Yes, but I advise you not to go looking for her. She only wished to make sure you are well, nothing further," Dumbledore said, holding my gaze. I drooped considerably. Why wouldn't she want to meet me?

"Well, I'll assume you both want to get back to your friends, so I'll finish there." he said, standing up. Harry and I followed suit, walking numbly to the door. I felt as though I was watching from outside my body. Dumbledore saw us out, but stopped as we went through the doorway.

"One more thing. I am quite aware I won't be able to stop you from telling your closest friends, but please do not tell anyone else. It could be a great danger." I nodded, now feeling worse than I had when I had first entered the office. You-Know-Who might come after me now? That was what Dumbledore implied. We left the spiral staircase and Harry looked at me.

"So, er, cuz?" he said.

I laughed weakly. "Cuz."


	5. Chapter 4 I'd Prefer Incest to This

When Harry and I got back to Gryffindor Tower, all I wanted to do was curl up in bed, but I was ambushed by the twins and Lee as soon as I climbed through the portrait hole.

"Oi! Wher've you been?" Fred asked. He looked at Harry, who also climbed out. He raqsed his eyebrows.

"Off snogging then?" Lee asked, grinning. I opened my mouth to say no, but was interrupted by George.

"It's our first day back! Have a little restraint!"

"Look- we went to see Dumbledore, remember?" I said, punching George hard enough to make him moan in pain.

"Oh yeah, right, sorry. Unless-" Fred grinned now.

Lee joined in. "He was merely a decoy..."  
"So you could get Harry alone!"

"No, guys, God." I said, but I was laughing.

"Maybe we should listen to what Harry's got to say," Hermione put in. "Ron and I would like to know why Harry had to go to Dumbledore." I shot Hermione a grateful look, but she pointedly avoided me.

"Fine, fine. Natalie, you can give me that foot rub while we listen," George said. I sighed and sat down by the hearth, taking his sock foot in my hands. Harry began telling the story, me adding things in as we went.

The end of the story brough silence to the room.

"Blimey," whispered Ron, who looked awestruck. A few more minutes passed and nobody said a word.

"Well, I guess we believe you though I wouldn't put it past Natalie here to be incestuous." Fred said. I narrowed my eyes at him but he just smiled.

"Do you think the teachers know? Because if Snape knows, he could tell You-Know-Who and then-" Ron began.

"Dumbledore trusts Snape!" said Hermione irritably. "But I'm sure Dumbledore kept it quiet."

"Can't take any risks." I mumbled.

"Do you really think You-Know-Who would come after Natalie if he found out?" asked Lee. My stomach did a flip.

"It does make sense for him to," said Hermione matter-of-factly."They're the last Potters left."

"Lovely" I said, pushing George's feet off of me. I stood up and, ignoring everyones' protests went upstairs to the girls' dormitory. If anyone leaked this out, I'd be done for, killed like half of my family, whoever they were. I crawled into bed and stared out the window. I wished I had never found out, that way I wouldn't spen the rest of my days walking on eggshells.

**A/N: So I wanted to still add in the DA, but since Umbridge won't be a part of my story, I'm looking for ideas as to how to introduce it. If anyone has anything, message me or put it in a review. Thanks and hope you like it so far! :)**


	6. Chapter 5 Out of the Loop

I wake up feeling like I had only slept for a few seconds. Sunlight filtered through my four-poster's curtains and I stretched my stiff back.

"Morning Lavender," I yawned, shuffling sleepily into the adjoining girl's lavatory.

"Enjoy your summer?" she asked, going into the shower stall next to mine.

"It was-ahhhh!" I gasped as a spurt of cold water shot out of the showerhead. "Okay." I was fully awake now. "You?"

Lavender launched into an elaborate story, but as I washed my hair everything came back. Harry being my cousin, You-Know-Who, my real mother. I dried myself off with a fresh scarlet towel bearing the Gryffindor crest, dressed in my robes, then glared at my reflection. Masses of kinky-curly hair bushed out from my head. This was one thing I could fix. I pulled out my bottle of Sleekeazy's hair potion and poured a generous amount onto my beast of a head. Within seconds, I had silky straight hair. Hermione rolled her eyes from across the room.

"You should try it," I said coldly, putting it in my bedside drawer. "Might help a bit."

"No, thanks. I don't rate appearance over everything else in life.:" she retorted. She hoisted her bag over her shoulder and pushed past me, leaving a cold draft from the open door.

"What's wrong with her?" Lavender asked. I shrugged and waited for her to collect her books so that we could go down to the Great Hall for breakfast.

In the common room, Fred, George and Lee were pinning up a Skiving Snackboxes order form.

"Guys, we haven't finished them," I pointed out. Our Nosebleed Nougat still had no cure. All summer, I had been researching ways to fix it, and had come up with Essence of Murtlap. We still had to go to the apothecary in Hogsmeade to get some supplies.

"Pre-order" said George. He rubbed his hands together, and I knew that he was thinking about all the gold that we would be getting. Then he stopped and frowned.

"You alright? You look terrible." he said. I peered at my face in the mirror above the fireplace. He was right; my eyes were red and bloodshot, framed by large, dark circles and a pimple was forming on my chin. There was no lying my way out of this.

"I couldn't sleep," I admitted. George softened and gave me a bear hug. Tears filled my eyes and I buried my face in his shoulder to hide them.

"We're always around, no matter what happens." he murmured. I nodded and wiped my eyes as he pulled away. "But right now I'm famished, so er, I'm gonna head downstairs."

I smiled and the four of us headed down to the Great Hall. We slid into seats at our table and sadly I was in plain view of Malfoy, who smiled at me in a sort of leering way. I nibbled at a piece of toast and kept my gaze down.

Meanwhile, Professor McGonagall came around, handing out timetables. Defence Against the Dark Arts, double Potions and Herbology. Lupin had returned this year, since most parents had finally accepted that he was a tame werewolf. I was looking forward to that, at least. The food finally disappeared off the table and I got up, alone, to walk to my first class. To my surprise, when I got to Lupin's class, Harry patted the desk next to him. I hesitated, but Ron sat beside the empty seat designated for myself and nodded. I ignored Hermione's glare and slid into my desk.

"Goodmorning everyone," Lupin said when the chatter died down. "Today I thought we'd start off with something I know you all thoroughly enjoyed in your third year." He motioned to the rattling wardrobe in the corner of the room. "A Boggart."

While everyone else gasped excitedly, I slumped down lower than usual in my seat. Two years ago, the Boggart had turned into a clown. Now, I was certain it would turn into You-Know-Who – whatever he looked like.

While everyone lined up in front of the wardrobe, Harry and I both made a beeline for Professor Lupin. He nodded. "I know about the, er, predicament." he said. "So, just go to the back of the line and hopefully we won't get to you two today." We did what we were told, but instead of feeling relief, I felt fear. If Dumbledore had told the teachers, Snape would jknow. Harry and I both looked at each other at the same time, expressions so similar to one another's that I swore I could see a resemblance in our features.

"What do we do?" I asked. I bit my lip and felt the familiar dropping sensation in my stomach.

"I dunno- tell everyone that our death certificate's just been signed?" Harry replied.

"Well when yyou put it that way -" I began, but Harry shook his head.

"Hermione's right. Snape may have been a Death Eater, but he's part of the Order."

The Order? I haven't even heard of that before. I repeated this to Harry, who sighed.

"I guess I have some explaining to do."

**A/N: Thanks so much for the suggestions to replace Umbridge! I'm working on an idea right now, but I won't spoil anything.**

**I'm also not trying to ne JK Rowling, and never will be. :)**


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